A Wagon Ride Through Idyllic Swiss Countryside

It is a crisp morning and the sun is shining. In these woods along the Swiss-French border, the air is scented with pine.

I am drifting slowly back in time. My inner clock, recently of jet speed, is nearly forgotten.

Moving from one place to another is now by foot, horse or Gypsy wagon. La Belle, a roan filly, is saddled and tied to the back of the wagon, waiting for our morning ride.

In the meadow beyond the forest comes the clunk-clunk sound of bells as cows graze lazily in the plush, green grass.

More than 1,000 years ago the only person here was a hermit named Ursicinus, or so the story goes. His cave was nearby in what is now St. Ursanne, and his only companion was a bear.

An Admirable Choice

I mention the hermit not because I wish to be one, but because I admire his choice of a hermitage.

It is the serene, rolling countryside, minus the jagged, snow-covered peaks, that one associates with Switzerland. The feeling here is one of isolation from the 20th Century.

Several years ago the Automobile Club of Switzerland introduced this novel vacation idea: Gypsy wagons drawn by horses through the countryside to inns for overnight stays.

Complete camping and picnic equipment for the weeklong caravan is packed in the wagons. At night, after caring for the horses, farmers replenish the picnic baskets, so once on the road there is freedom from shopping, food or hotel reservations.

Arriving by train in Delemont, we took the postal motor coach to Lucelle. After dinner at the Auberge de Lucelle we received instruction in driving the carriages in a film and a detailed handbook. We knew from the start that experience in the care of horses was not necessary.

A Trial Run

The next morning, in a light rain, we took a trial run with Pierre Sauntier, the man in charge of caravans.

Sauntier showed us how to handle the gentle French mountain horse that has been bred to pull a wagon. These horses are so well-trained that if the driver becomes lost, the horse usually knows the way to the next barn. However, maps that show major roads and the paths through meadows and woods are included.

Road markers for the carriages are yellow and posted often, along with highway signs and street markers.

No Language Barrier

Residents seem to enjoy having visitors roll by their houses, and they often take time to converse. Language is no barrier because most Swiss speak at least four. Farmers plowing fields never seem too busy to wave.

Our first overnight along the way was the Lion d’Or in Vendlincourt. This three-story rectangular hotel, painted white with red shutters, is typical of the inns.

Our room was spotlessly clean, though not fancy. The bed was covered by an immense eiderdown comforter.

The shower and washbasin were in the room and the water closet a short walk down the hall. (Private baths are available in most accommodations.)

It is the food that makes the Lion d’Or and the other inns stand out. Typical Swiss meals include two complete servings of the main course, the second of which is presented on a clean dinner plate.

A one-week caravan trip costs about $60 a day, per person. For shorter trips, prices for two people are two days, 265 Swiss francs (about $202 U.S.); three days, 360 Swiss francs; four days, 366 Swiss francs.

The package price includes horse and wagon, horse feed, picnic table and chairs, plus overnight in small inns, based on double occupancy. A $15 supplement is charged for a single room.

Overnights are at Hotel du Lion d’Or in Courgenay, Hotel St. Hubert in Mormont and Hotel du Jura at Damphreux.

Wagons may be booked from late April through October.

For more information, contact Voyages ProJura, 16 Rue de l’Hotel-de-Ville, 2740 Moutier, Switzerland.

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Other trips while on tour may be to the watch museum at La Chaux-de-Fonds; watchmaking at Blancpain factory, Le Brassus; annual horse fair in second week of August, Saignelegier; old horse home, La Roselet, and a World War II underground army fortress at Vallorbe.

Hotels either before or after the wagon trip: Hotel de la Lande, Le Brassus, from 53 Swiss francs (about $40) double, half-board, and Hotel des Deux-Clefs, St. Ursanne, about $61 for double, shower and breakfast. At the Hotel des Deux-Clefs restaurant a meal is 60 Swiss francs (about $45).

At a very good restaurant in Delemont, capital of the canton of Jura, dinner per person, including local wine, costs between 40 and 60 Swiss francs (about $30 to $45). A good restaurant in Porrentruy, for example, at Hotel de la Gere, also will cost between $30 and $45.

For further information, contact French Government Tourist Office, 9401 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 840, Beverly Hills 90212.